All the opponents of Pete King’s hearings are on message with the same threat: Any discussion of Jihadist “violent extremism” is the primary cause of Jihadist “violent extremism.” All together now, from the Hill and the Jihad Lobby…
From the Hill…
Today the Alliance for Justice publicized an open letter (PDF) to House Homeland Security Committee Chairman Rep. Peter King (R-NY) signed by 55 left-wing and political-Islam-promoting organizations warning that this week’s hearings on domestic Muslim radicalization “will serve to further promote the demonization and scapegoating of millions of American Muslims, while providing little valuable insight into the prevention of domestic terrorism.”
The letter was distributed at a March 2 Capitol Hill panel on “Islamophobia” that featured Muslim Brotherhood front groups including MPAC (the Muslim Public Affairs Council), and two far-left journalists: Matt Duss of the Center for American Progress and notorious Israel-hating blogger Max Blumenthal. Self-described conservative Suhail Khan was the main speaker, fresh off his drubbing by David Horowitz in a keynote address at CPAC and exposure in the media as a Muslim Brotherhood operative. Khan continues to damage any conservative credibility he has left by allying himself with the fringe “red-green alliance” of leftists and Islamists, accusing mainstream conservatives and elected officials of fear-mongering and inciting “violent extremism.” Khan and his leftist friends’ fixation with Frank Gaffney is developing into a full-blown obsession, as his name was invoked at the “Islamophobia” panel no less than 23 times.
From the Jihad Lobby…
James Zogby, President of the Arab American Institute and long-time Democratic Party activist, missed his slot as a March 2 panelist but stayed on message in his March 5 column for the Huffington Post: “Let me state quite directly: Islamophobia and those who promote it are a greater threat to the United States of America than Anwar al Awlaqi and his rag-tag team of Terrorists.” He claimed that a “well-funded ‘cottage industry'” of Islamophobic “bigots” – including “national political leaders” and “elements of the Republican party” – is “fomenting hate crimes” and threatening to “tear apart the very fabric of America.” As to the Pete King hearings he stated, “What they should also know, is that in the process of targeting a religion in this way and engaging in this most ‘un-American activity’ King and company are, in fact, opening the door for increased alienation and future radicalization.”
The panelists announced they would release the transcript of the proceedings on March 10, the day of the Homeland Security Committee hearings. We think sunlight is the best disinfectant; so here’s an unedited transcript showing the red-green alliance in action.